Tag: Week 2 2012

The grade report for the New York Jets week 2 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers

Quarterbacks (C) – Mark Sanchez came out of the gates on fire, completing 4 of his 5 first passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. After that, the passing offense went into the tank as he finished an ugly 10/27 for 138 yards. He misfired on a few passes down the field and didn’t seem to be on the same page as his receivers. He wasn’t helped by dropped passes, poor route running and a nonexistent running game but overall this was a disappointing effort.

Tim Tebow had an impressive 22 yard run and sadly might be the best running back this team has right now. I’d rather watch 20 Wildcat runs than 20 2 yard Shonn Greene runs at this point.

Running Backs (D) – Shonn Greene finished up with 11 carries for 23 yards. If you take away his one 9 yard run. He had 10 carries for 14 yards. He also added in a holding penalty and a whiffed block in pass protection for good measure. We are two games into the season and Greene has 38 carries for 117 yards with 1 run for over 10 yards…not even close to good enough. The blame doesn’t fall on the offensive line, Greene doesn’t have the speed to get to the edge and can’t break through to the second level when holes are actually there.

The only reason this isn’t an F is because Bilal Powell showed some elusiveness on a 10 yard run and finished with 3.7 yards per carry which looks great next to Greene’s 3.0 on the season. Joe McKnight also had a nice 12 yard run where be broke a few tackles and made a defender miss…perhaps it is time to give him and Powell a longer look.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends (F) – I will go into this in more detail during our film breakdown but Santonio Holmes was awful yesterday. He spent the entire game whining at the officials, dropping passes and running lazy routes that lacked any measure of the needed preciseness from a number one receiver. Stephen Hill struggled with the Steelers physical coverage. Jeremy Kerley provided a big play with a 45 yard reception but was absent besides it.

Jeff Cumberland missed a hot read that could have converted a first down and didn’t provide anything in the passing game. The Jets really missed Dustin Keller in this one.

Defensive Line (C) – The run defense was terrific as expected, led by Muhammad Wilkerson and Sione Pouha. Yet, the lack of a pass rush was frustrating to see. Quinton Coples is barely on the field and when he has been looks completely lost. Outside of a sack when Ben Roethlisnberger slid behind the line of scrimmage, the defensive line didn’t touch him once.

Linebackers (C) – Way too many missed tackles. David Harris missed two opportunities for a sack. Calvin Pace was nowhere near the quarterback. Garret McIntyre of all people had the game of his life, finishing with 2 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss and 7 tackles. He should become a regular part of the defense moving forward, which means less Bryan Thomas and Aaron Maybin…who has been invisible so far this year.

Secondary (F) – They get a “F” just because of how putrid Antonio Cromartie was on Mike Wallace’s touchdown. What a lazy play that completely lacked any football awareness. LaRon Landry picked up two personal fouls and Kyle Wilson was average at best. Let’s hope Revis is back next week.

Special Teams (D) – Jeremy Kerley’s muffed punt was a killer in the second half. Isaiah Trufant should have downed a punt at the 1 yard line but inexplicably let himself land in the end-zone with the ball. Nick Folk hit his only field goal attempt.

Coaching (D) – Tony Sparano had no counter move when Dick LeBeau adjusted after the Jets first couple of drives. Rex was too conservative at the end of the half and admitted the team had a sloppy/sluggish week of practice. They better be ready to turn it up this week because if they slip up against Miami, 1-2 heading into back to back games against San Francisco and Houston isn’t going to be pretty.

The New York Jets laid an egg in Pittsburgh to drop their record to 1-1

It was going to be a tall order for the New York Jets in Pittsburgh, against a desperate 0-1 team particularly without Darrelle Revis, Dustin Keller and Bryan Thomas in the line-up. However, there are no excuses for how the Jets lost today. Dropped passes. Muffed punts. Porous tackling. Questionable coaching decisions. The game was there for the taking and the Jets put forth a sloppy, borderline embarrassing effort.

On offense the Jets got off a fast start but eventually fizzled thanks to a lack of a running game and dropped passes. Shonn Greene had 11 carries for 23 yards and again made nobody miss and broke no tackles. On the eye test Bilal Powell looked better when carrying the football and yes, the Jets should have turned to Tim Tebow more frequently as a rushing option. Greene isn’t good enough not be a supported by another option or two. Santonio Holmes spent the entire game whining to the officials and dropping catchable passes. Stephen Hill wasn’t involved in the offense at all and the Jets badly missed Dustin Keller, as Jeff Cumberland looked clueless at times. Mark Sanchez missed a few opportunities down the field and couldn’t get the offense in rhythm after the first quarter.

On defense, the tackling was awful. Rex Ryan consistently dialed up the proper blitz call but watch LaRon Landry and David Harris whiff on sacks. Landry also picked up a pair of personal fouls. It was frustrating to watch the Jets inability to bring Ben Roethlisberger down. Quinton Coples barely played. Aaron Maybin was invisible. Where is the pass rush going to come from? Antonio Cromartie looked lost on Mike Wallace’s touchdown and Kyle Wilson didn’t impress in extended duty.

Look, the Jets weren’t going 16-0. There are worse places to lose than on the road in Pittsburgh…like at home to Arizona for example. The entire AFC East is 1-1 and the Jets are 1-o in their division. They need to handle business in Miami next week before facing a pair of brutally tough games at home against San Francisco and Houston. In order to do that, they must find a running game and have their playmakers actually make plays.

Chris Gross – Jets 24, Steelers 17 – Since I couldn’t have been more off with my prediction last week, it’s only fitting I deliver a prediction of redemption. With so many key players, for both teams, sitting out this week, it is extremely difficult to gage where this game will go. Kyle Wilson, who will be starting opposite Antonio Cromartie with Darrelle Revis out, has a huge opportunity to prove that the Jets can rely on him to play well consistently. Wilson will likely be matched up with Antonio Brown, who has become one of Ben Roethlisberger’s favorite targets over the past year, and will certainly have his hands full. Brown has big play ability and consistently finds holes in coverage to make key grabs and keep the chains moving for Pittsburgh. Wilson has a huge task at hand, but should be excited about the opportunity to prove himself.

Pittsburgh has a below average offensive line, one that gave up five sacks to Denver last week. Expect the Jets to get to Big Ben on more than one occasion. Look for Muhammed Wilkerson, Calvin Pace, and possibly Quinton Coples to all register sacks this week. With Rashard Mendenhall out for Pittsburgh again, the Steelers will likely turn to their stable of less than average running backs, all of whom the Jets will shut down early. Look for Pittsburgh Offensive Coordinator Todd Haley to start airing it out by the second quarter, leading to 1-2 interceptions by Ben Roethlisberger.

Offensively, the Jets will look to keep that fire from Buffalo burning, especially with Pittsburgh’s two best defensive players, James Harrison and Troy Polamalu, also out with injuries. New York will try to get the run game going, but with Shonn Greene average under 4 YPC, Sparano will likely let Sanchez take control and look to get Stephen Hill, Santonio Holmes, and Jeremy Kerley the ball in space. Ultimately, this game could come down to the final possession, one that has a Sanchez game winning drive written all over it, a phenomenal way to enter Miami week with San Francisco and Houston looming afterwards.

Rob Celletti – As exhilarating as week one was, it was just that: week one. I’m an optimist (I picked the Jets to win 10 games this year, after all), but I also don’t want to start drinking the Kool-aid just because the Jets walloped a suspect football team with a mediocre quarterback at home. Sunday’s game will be a battle. Pittsburgh is a quality football team, and even though they’re banged up, I expect a motivated Steelers side that will be anxious to wash the taste of their opening week loss out of their mouths. It will be a hard-fought game in which both teams will play well. The Jets won’t have such an easy time throwing the ball, but Sanchez will put up representative numbers. He’ll also get sacked in key spots by a Pittsburgh defense that will be more creative and active than Buffalo. Also, remember, the Jets put the ball on the ground three times against the Bills and Sanchez was intercepted once. If they make mistakes like that in this game, Pittsburgh will capitalize. In the end, an even game comes down to the final possession, and Pittsburgh does enough to win, 24-21.

Chris Celletti – Most people probably think this is going to be a knock down, drag ’em out kind of game. I think both teams will look and say “Hey, their best defensive player is out, let’s take a few shots here” (as long as Troy Polamalu and/or James Harrison don’t play, with Darrelle Revis already ruled out), and we could be in for a more high scoring affair than most people think. I don’t think the Steelers are nearly as tough as we’re used to them being, which isn’t to say that they’re not good. They’re still good, but in a different way with a more dynamic offense led by three very good receivers. Mark Sanchez will have more success through the air, while Shonn Greene will continue to find a way to gain three yards, no more or less, on literally every play. The game will come down to wire, with maybe a big special teams play deciding things. In a bit of an upset I’ll take Jets 31, Steelers 27

Mike Donnelly – This game is going to be a much tougher test than last week against the paper champion Buffalo Bills. The Steelers are not the powerhouse team they were a few years ago, and they’ll be without mainstays James Harrison, Troy Polamalu, and Rashard Mendenhall, but they’re still a formidable opponent — especially at Heinz Field. The Jets will be without Darrelle Revis of course as well, which is a major blow, bit I expect the defense to exploit he Steelers Swiss cheese offensive line and make up for the absence of #24, pulling out a nail biter late in the 4th quarter 23-20.

I’m actually okay with going just 1-2 last week. It was your typical Week 1 craziness…the Eagles barely beat the Browns, the Saints lost badly at the Superdome, and that team in Green and White put up 48 points against everybody’s preseason darlings. Week 1 is impossible to predict. Now, it’s not like in Week 2 we know exactly what every team is like yet, but at least we have something to work off of other than preseason, which has once again been proven to be a total waste of time and worth almost zero attention.

As I look at the Week 2 schedule, it’s perfect for gambling because there are a lot of crappy games. No one outside of Ohio would voluntarily watch Bengals/Browns. The same can be said for Dolphins/Raiders and Bills/Chiefs unless you’ve been dealt the horrible hand of being a fan of one of those franchises, so naturally, I didn’t choose any of those games in my Week 2 bets. Even money isn’t worth sitting through that crap. — Here is where you will be betting on Top Bet in the NFL

Giants (-7) vs. Buccaneers

Much like the Packers at Lambeau on Thursday, the Giants return home after a tough opening season loss and are not going to fall to 0-2. I have never been a member of the Josh Freeman fan club, and don’t think I ever will be. The Giants’ d-line should be ticked off and will take it out on him. Plus, I really, really don’t want to see Greg Schiano return to New Jersey and score a big win, because Peter King and Harvey Araton will write a combined 7,559 insufferable words about it on Monday. I don’t want that, and neither does Eli Manning. Giants, big.

Colts (+2) vs. Vikings

Blaine Gabbert threw for 260 yards against the Vikings last week again. Read that sentence again. Now put your money on the Colts and Andrew Luck at home.

Texans (-7) at Jaguars

Is this the halftime line? I know the Jaguars are at home and have a decent enough run defense to keep the Texans’ running game in check, but how many points can Gabbert and Co. (that sounds like midwestern insurance company or something) score against the Texans? I’m not convinced they can put up 10 points all day and if that’s the case, the Texans only need a solid 20-24 to cover this spread.

Bonus Non-Football Bet Of The Week (Record, 0-1)

Not that anybody watched, but I was wrong about last week’s non-football bonus bet, as Andre Ward totally dismantled Chad Dawson in a 10th round TKO. Andre Ward is a name worth keeping tabs on though, because as Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather start to fade off in the boxing superstar sunset, Ward is the most likely guy to take over the throne.

This week I move to baseball. Is there anything more sure in sports these days than the New York Mets being a total waste of space? This is not exactly bold, but the Brewers are currently at -240 to win the weekend series between the two. Isn’t this free money?